GPs are demanding that prescription charges be scrapped in England, calling them a “manifestly unfair tax”.

England is the only part of the UK where patients still pay for medicines.

Last month the price for a single prescribed item went up to £8.05. In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland prescriptions are free.

Now a leading medical journal has asked why patients in England are subject to this additional “tax” on medicines.

There are many exemptions from the prescription charge, including age, pregnancy and some specific chronic conditions

Dr James Cave

The Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin calls the charge “outdated”. It says that the latest available figures, for 2012, show that 90 per cent of all medicines dispensed outside hospital attracted no fee, as most went to patients aged 60 and over.

Yet 80 per cent of patients aged 18 to 59 had to pay for their drugs.

The editorial, written by Dr James Cave, editor of the DTB and a practising GP in Newbury, Berkshire, adds: “There are many exemptions from the prescription charge, including age, pregnancy and some specific chronic conditions.”

There is also the cost of administering the system. The article adds: “We believe it is time politicians showed their commitment to a patient-centred NHS and abolished prescription charges in England.”

Dr Andrew Green of the British Medical Association said: “We believe the best solution is for prescription charges to be abolished in England.”

The Department of Health said: “Demands on the NHS are rising, with spending on medicines alone almost doubling since 2000, so prescription charges remain an important source of revenue.”